Stunning 1956 Mark II Lincoln Continental in excellent condition--very well cared for. Gorgeous color combo: black exterior with red/cream interior and leather seats. Power steering, power front disk brakes, power windows, power vent windows and power seat. Very clean vehicle.
A little history:
When the Mark II was introduced in 1956, it was the most expensive car built in America. It sold for around $10,000, the equivalent of a new Rolls-Royce or two Cadillacs (the average price of a car at that time was $1,900). In spite of this, Ford estimated they lost over a thousand dollars per car on the 3,000 that were built. William Clay Ford had set out to build the finest and most elegant American car available, designed to recapture the spirit of the great classics of the prewar period. The Mark II's inspiration was the celebrated V12-powered Lincoln Continental of the 1940s.
Having considered using an outside design team, Ford turned inside to their own Special Products Division. What emerged was something quite unlike other American cars of the period. While other makes of the time experimented with flamboyant chrome-laden styling, the Continental Mark II was almost European in its simplicity of line and understated grace.
The car had power steering, power brakes, power windows, power seats, power vent windows, and a tachometer. Fueling was accomplished via a swing-away left taillight. The Mark II had only one option: air conditioning, for $595. Most of the car was hand-built, taking 2 weeks to assemble, to an exacting standard, including the application of multiple coats of paint, hand sanding, double lacquering, and polishing to perfection. Each Mark II was delivered to the dealership in a fleece-lined cover to protect it.
In 1999, Elvis Presley’s white Mark II sold at auction for $250,000. Below is a partial list of previous Mark II owners, which reads like a Who’s Who of celebrities, dignitaries and industrialists:
Elvis Presley, Elizabeth Taylor, Sha of Iran, Henry J. Kaiser, Cecil B. DeMille, Frank Sinatra, William Harrah, E. S. Pillsbury II, Howard Hughes, Michael Todd, Barry Goldwater, Jack Warner, Louis Prima, Andrew Wyeth, Jaun Peron, Walt Disney, Clark Gable, Lana Turner, Doris Day, Igor Sikorsky, Howard Johnson, Dwight D. Eisenhower, Harvey Firestone, Jr., Nelson Rockefeller, Darryl F. Zanuck, Princess Grace, Judy Garland.
